Easy Holiday Menus
Everyone looks forward to sitting down to holiday dinner with family and friends. Here are three unique menus that all feature seasonal flavours and ingredients for a familiar taste of the holidays. We’ve included lots of tips and preparation ideas too, so each meal is easier to prepare than you think.
Traditional Menu: A Classic Christmas
Traditional Menu: A Classic Christmas
Hearken back to yuletides past with a perfectly prepared turkey and all the memorable trimmings and sides.
Appetizer
- Baked Brie with Spiced Nuts & Apricot Jam is an elegant start to the meal and so simple to prepare. Serve with crackers and sliced apple.
Main
- Ultimate Roast Turkey uses a classic herb-butter rub to succulently flavour the bird. To carve picture-perfect turkey slices, remove the drumsticks and legs before carving the breast.
Sides
- Sausage, Chestnut & Onion Dressing is a traditional stuffing that bakes in its own dish for just 20 minutes in a 350°F (180°C) oven. As soon as the turkey is done and out of the oven, put the dressing in to bake.
- Classic Scalloped Potatoes are infused with fresh thyme and fragrant garlic. For added flavour variety, substitute sweet potatoes for half of the yellow potatoes.
- Our 7-ingredient Sautéed Green Beans with Shallots & Bacon puts savoury greens on the table.
- Tossed in honey and fennel, Roasted Carrots with Carrot Top Pesto bring a burst of colour to the table.
Dessert
- Try our Apple Pie Cookies – a dessert that combines two classic sweets. Topped with apple pie filling and finished with a mini lattice crust, these cookies are pretty and delicious.
Retro Menu: Serve up Nostalgia
Retro Menu: Serve up Nostalgia
Traditional flavours and herbs help make this nostalgic spread a perfect one for the holidays.
Appetizer
- Compliments Shrimp Ring with Cocktail Sauce is a simply delicious retro-style appetizer.
Main
- Roast Pork Tenderloin with Plum Chutney & Butternut Squash is a succulent blend of seasonal flavours and yummy textures. A narrow serving tray works best with pork medallions placed along the centre of the dish and flanked by the butternut squash.
Sides
- Mushroom Stuffing with Bacon & Pine Nuts combines artisan-style bread with sliced mushrooms, bacon and other satisfying ingredients. For a moister stuffing, add extra chicken stock or butter before baking.
- Sensations Salad kit with Compliments is a convenient side dish – all you have to do is toss it together. If you have the time, make Easy Caesar Dressing from scratch and add it to washed and chopped romaine lettuce; top with Compliments Caesar Croutons and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Dessert
- Upside-Down Pineapple Squares put a new spin on a retro dessert, combining fruit, caramel and cake.
- No-Bake Vanilla Rum Balls feature rum-soaked wafer cookies. Replace the vanilla wafers with equal parts chocolate wafers for a chocolate version
Seafood Menu: Fish-Lovers’ Dinner
Seafood Menu: Fish-Lovers’ Dinner
Start a new family tradition with a festive menu inspired by the sea.
Appetizer
- An herbed goat cheese–infused appetizer, Mixed Mushroom & Goat Cheese Tarts, pairs perfectly with the main course.
Main
- Sweet Pomegranate-Glazed Salmon is the star of this holiday menu. It is topped with a subtly seasoned sour cream, dill and horseradish sauce.
Sides
- Roasted Vegetables Parmigiano is a scrumptious, slightly caramelized casserole of cruciferous greens. The dish can be prepared earlier in the day, and served later at room temperature.
- Warm from the oven, golden brown Garlic & Herb Pull-Apart Dinner Rolls are soft and fragrant. To save time, substitute with a Compliments Whole Wheat Baguette warmed in the oven at 350°F (180°C) for three to five minutes. For a modern twist, serve rolls or bread with herb butter: add a clove of crushed garlic and one tablespoon of chopped fresh dill to warm butter.
- Depending on the number of dinner guests, a grain-based Asparagus, Tomato & Goat Cheese Quinoa Salad will round out this menu.
Dessert
- A decorative plate of Panache Mini Profiteroles made with authentic choux pastry and real cream will hit the sweet spot.